Symbio Energy feedback

devondiver

molerat said:

Mister_G said:

Surprise, surprise!  Out of the blue, I had a telephone call at 2pm this afternoon from Symbio asking if I'd like to have a smart meter fitted.

The fitter was in the area and could be with me within the hour!

Lo and behold he turned up at 3pm!  By 4pm I had a brand new Smets2 meter fitted.

Apparently it's got to be adopted by the system and that could take up to 24 hours.

The IHD still says "Not Commissioned", so I assume that this will update once connected.

We shall see.  If it means that Symbio can then bill on actual consumption, rather than the mythical figures they produce each month, then this must be a step forward.

Brave or foolish, not sure.  They are still going to bill going forward on their ridiculous estimates.  The only difference is they can now fudge the current figure under the guise of no smart read !

Got it in one!  👍

devondiver

bsms1147 said:

They should just come out and say as much, and ask for a retainer or some money up front from each user. Would be much more transparent. Basically, ‘you can have access to these rates but you need to give us £x amount on your account first’. I genuinely think it’s not long until they do something like this. 

So we all become shareholders? With this shower of rascals??

Er . . . . let me think about that for a minute picosecond.

molerat

Totally confused by them now.  Get a new quote and they offer fixed DD and seasonal fixed DD whereas a month ago it was variable and seasonal fixed.

LessImpecunious

LessImpecunious said:

I attempted to sign up for a new (variable) deal last week but like someone who posted earlier (sorry - too many posts to read through and I can't find who now!) I didn't get the email confirmation. Having read the posts by chrisw2k above, plus others comments (and looked at the prices available from competitors) thought I'd try signing up for a fixed deal this morning as if a new customer - expecting to get booted out of the process at some point... However, I was able to go through it all, and had a confirmation email of a new fixed deal tariff (10p/day; 12.something unit rate) to start on 21st June. The email sent says that the tariff ends on the 21st May 2021, but the price is guaranteed until 31st May 2022... Realise this means 2DDs will probably go out this month but if the switch works will still be worth it.... Will wait to see what happens next...(and will udpate here)

Update now available - checked into my Customer Portal today and I have been switched to the fixed tariff I applied for on the 7th June, as of 23rd June, with a tariff end date of 30 June 2022...

jbuchanangb

I have switched to Symbio with effect from 23 June. I don't understand the remarks on here about Symbio collecting high amounts by DD. My typical monthly consumption is 330 kWh, which would cost £43.72 at the tariff I have with them. This is exactly what they calculated and put on their tariff calculation, i.e. £524.63 per year. They will be claiming a "seasonal" DD from me of £35.56 shortly. This seems to be about 80% of the average monthly bill. My electricity consumption is pretty much flat through the year, e.g. 320 in May 350 in December, so I am expecting that by underpaying £8pm for a while before Symbio change me to the "winter" DD I will build up a debit balance. They will be lending me money, not the other way round, and then after the winter season, the balance will have changed. Or am I missing something?

CRISPIANNE3

jbuchanangb said:

I have switched to Symbio with effect from 23 June. I don't understand the remarks on here about Symbio collecting high amounts by DD. 

Please come back in a few months with an update!

molerat

jbuchanangb said:

I have switched to Symbio with effect from 23 June. I don't understand the remarks on here about Symbio collecting high amounts by DD. My typical monthly consumption is 330 kWh, which would cost £43.72 at the tariff I have with them. This is exactly what they calculated and put on their tariff calculation, i.e. £524.63 per year. They will be claiming a "seasonal" DD from me of £35.56 shortly. This seems to be about 80% of the average monthly bill. My electricity consumption is pretty much flat through the year, e.g. 320 in May 350 in December, so I am expecting that by underpaying £8pm for a while before Symbio change me to the "winter" DD I will build up a debit balance. They will be lending me money, not the other way round, and then after the winter season, the balance will have changed. Or am I missing something?

Yes you are.  The DD  will be based not on your 330 pm but on 330 + 30% pm so 330 + 30% -10% for summer and 330 + 30% +10% for winter.

Petriix

molerat said:

jbuchanangb said:

I have switched to Symbio with effect from 23 June. I don't understand the remarks on here about Symbio collecting high amounts by DD. My typical monthly consumption is 330 kWh, which would cost £43.72 at the tariff I have with them. This is exactly what they calculated and put on their tariff calculation, i.e. £524.63 per year. They will be claiming a "seasonal" DD from me of £35.56 shortly. This seems to be about 80% of the average monthly bill. My electricity consumption is pretty much flat through the year, e.g. 320 in May 350 in December, so I am expecting that by underpaying £8pm for a while before Symbio change me to the "winter" DD I will build up a debit balance. They will be lending me money, not the other way round, and then after the winter season, the balance will have changed. Or am I missing something?

Yes you are.  The DD  will be based not on your 330 pm but on 330 + 30% pm so 330 + 30% -10% for summer and 330 + 30% +10% for winter.

My summer seasonal DD is £24. I followed the advice on here and underestimated my usage by about 20%. It all seems about right.

Boohoo

I got an email early today from Symbio saying they are delaying the new billing system due to customer feedback and from the regulator.

Reed_Richards

Boohoo said:

I got an email early today from Symbio saying they are delaying the new billing system due to customer feedback and from the regulator.

Me too.  This is the relevant part:

We have postponed the proposed changes to the new billing until further notice to respond to the feedback from customers and the regulator. We anticipate that the changes we make will be beneficial and equitable to the majority of people. In the meantime, please keep in mind that we will bill at the beginning of each month as usual. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience.